A Stór
by HandOfTheQueen
Summary: AU story set in NYC 1930's. Regina Mills finds herself taken in by the Irish mob after Emma Nolan, daughter of the notorious Nolan crime family, rescues her from an abusive partner. The line between obligation and gratitude blurs as Regina is forced to spend more time with her enigmatic blonde savior. Slight OOC for some characters introduced later on in the story. (Rewrite)
1. Chapter 1

**Story Rating: M (For language, mature themes, violence and future sexytimes.)**

 **AU story line set in NYC 1930's. Considered this a slow burn as this is definitely not a love at first sight story. Slight OOC for some characters introduced later on in the story.**

 **Disclaimer: I own no rights associated with Once Upon A Time. I am simply borrowing the characters. No beta so all mistakes are my own.**

 **Some Background Information (Feel free to ignore and carry on if you wish):** So the backdrop for this story takes place in Hell's Kitchen (Manhattan-New York City) during the early 1930's. After the Wall Street Crash of 1929 America has fallen into an economic depression the likes of which had never been seen. Prohibition is still in place and organized crime has benefited greatly from bootlegging alcohol in from Canada and selling it in speakeasies all around the city. Rather than reducing crime, Prohibition transformed some cities into battlegrounds between opposing bootlegging gangs. New York City saw an increase in prostitution, gambling, and racketeering that all stemmed from various mob families. Various Irish mobs have settled in Hell's Kitchen and on top of the infighting for control, Italian-immigrant based mobs also poise a threat. There is no universal governing body for the Irish Mob and the Irish organized crime groups tend to operate in association with each other, but not on a formal basis. Because of the lack of a governing body the bosses normally set there own rules, on various things like who can be a member and who can not. The story will mostly deal with two fictional families, the Nolan's and the Cassidy's. Though not based off of a specific crime family, Emma in this story represents a Street Boss to the Irish based Nolan family. Her father (David) is the current Boss (head) of the family and is grooming his daughter to take over. Though women during this time (in almost all aspects of life) were not held with much esteem to do work, this is a point with the story that I am taking some liberty with. That's not to say Emma hasn't/won't face a lot of adversity due to her gender. As the story goes on and more terms from this come into play I will do my best to leave an author's note to help clear up any confusion.

This first chapter is more of a short prologue to set the story in motion.

 **Trigger Warning: Implications of rape and sexual abuse**

* * *

"Let go of me Robin!"

The sun was beginning to set on them, and Regina had exhausted herself crying. In one respect she was angry at herself for being so obviously terrified of Robin Locksley, and on the other hand, she felt that if she had ever earned the right to cry as much as she wanted, it was on this day. He hadn't forced himself on her, yet, which she was honestly surprised by. She'd felt him wax hard and wane soft so many times in the past few hours that she was certain her first instincts had been right. It had been along her leg at first, but he'd moved, and any hope she had that she was mistaken had long since passed. She'd been with many men in the past due to her...job, but even if they swelled to thrice the size of what she'd seen they'd be nowhere near the thing that Robin had smugly sandwiched between their bodies. At first she'd tried to reassure herself that it wasn't something the size of her forearm, but from time to time he had ground it against her against the alleyway, and her hopes of not getting hurt on that score had been dashed.

She'd tried her best to stop crying, if only because she didn't want him to have the satisfaction of hearing her weep. It was bad enough that he'd be making her cry sooner than later. So she had stopped crying, whenever she could. It didn't take very long for her to get the sense that he enjoyed her sobs. He hadn't even done anything too obscene, but when her tears slowed, he kept doing things to make them start again. And whenever she screamed or sobbed or started crying after she'd stopped, he smiled like an ill behaved child, pleased with himself for misbehaving. Regina desperately wanted to stop for good, to show him that he couldn't just toy with her like that just because she worked for him, but it wasn't true. He could and he knew it. That was, perhaps, the most upsetting thing of all.

Given what he'd done in the past few minutes alone, Regina couldn't help that she started trembling uncontrollably as he shoved her against the brick wall. The people had watched them turn the corner into the alley way with wary eyes, but none asked if she was well or needed help. Anyone could tell she wasn't, and anyone could know there was nothing to be done about it. It wasn't their inaction that made her shiver though. It was the words Robin started saying when they passed the overflowing dumpster. Things about promising Regina not to harm Henry if she just kept calm, and how people got stupid when they heard a pretty girl screaming as he took his pleasure. Her father had always said she was strong, but Regina didn't think she was strong enough for this. How could she be? This was well beyond anything Regina had even dreamed of in her worst nightmares. Her life could never have prepared her for someone like him.

Robin didn't say anything, and she barely moved, irrationally hoping that if she too kept still that they might stand there in peace until he was bored enough to give up. 'Oh Lord teach him justice, Father give me strength, Father help me make of this what I can'- for a moment Regina hesitated, for she had never prayed for another's death, but her prayer only slipped for a moment in her mind before she thought- 'Death, come to meet him.'

"What's wrong Regina? Remember when you use to beg me for this?" A wave of cheap gin and smoke washed over Regina's cheek, causing her to flinch back. A stiff hand came up to slap the young woman in the face. "Answer me bitch!"

"Robin, please... stop-" her voice barely heard. Before either could respond, a new voice interrupted.

"Is there a problem here Locksley?" A voice, Irish in origin by the sounds of it, broke up whatever torment Robin had in store. From the side door of the opposite building there appeared to be three of them; men all dressed in slick looking tailor suits and light scruff adorning their faces staring down both Regina and Robin. The man closest to them seemed to be affected the most by what was going on. His eyes darted back and forth between Regina and Robin as he pieced the scenario out in silence. Regina thought his features battled between open hostility and anguish at what was he was witnessing. The man who had spoken up had dark hair pushed back off of his forehead, blue eyes that almost twinkled with mischief despite the time of night and a smile that seemed all too malicious. He was not someone Regina would have wanted to come across all by herself in the later hours of the day. And the third man was much harder to read. He appeared to be the biggest in bulk of the trio and yet the other two looked like much more of a threat just by how they were standing. What surprised Regina more than the appearance of the men was how quickly Robin managed to turn around to face the group.

"No-no problem here." Suddenly, Robin was all smiles as he finally put some distance between himself and Regina.

"That's not how I see it, Locksley," The dark haired man spoke up once more. "Looks to me as though you're getting real handsy with this dame back here. I might not be some hotshot egg-head like Booth, but from the looks of it, I don't think she too happy about that. What do you think Booth?"

"Sounds about right Killian," the man to his right replied.

"No honestly, this is all just a misunderstanding. Right Regina?" Robin looked to her as though she was her saving grace. And when she didn't answer quick enough his grip on her arm tightened just so to elicit a small gasp of pain from the brunette. "Right, Regina?"

"Right," she replied, her current terror clouding her ability to cover up the obvious lie she was forced to tell.

"I'd let her go if I was you," a softer accented voice said. Regina should have been prepared for all of the Irish immigrants that roamed the streets of Hell's Kitchen. This was their stomping grounds after all. It was a natural gathering place for all the Irishmen who got off the boat after weeks of travel at sea. What Regina hadn't been expecting was a woman to come out from behind the barricade of men. And in a man's suit no less. The articles of clothing hung to her body almost like a second skin- very much different from the boxy cuts the men wore these days- and her long blonde hair was pulled back in some sort of braided pony tail Regina had never come across before. Despite the very masculine -and bizarre- choice of apparel, there were still enough touches of femininity for anyone to see when they looked at the blonde. The woman who had been lingering in the back tossed her cigarette butt to the ground without so much as looking to where it landed. Her steps crunched the ground beneath as she broke past the line of men and wormed her way in between the two groups.

"E-"

"You don't get to call me that Locksley," the blonde cut off. "Especially since you know better than to show your face around here Robin."

"It's not what it looks like," he pleaded.

"That's what they all say." The woman tucked her hands into her pocket and nodded her head towards Killian and the other unnamed man. It was quick, but the two guys grabbed Robin by his upper arms and slammed him up against the hard brick wall. The sound of his skull hitting the wall was loud enough to draw Regina out of her stupor. She inched away as best as she could from Robin, but her legs shook from underneath. The fact that she was still standing was a miracle in itself.

"Come here," The blonde beckoned. When Regine refused to make a move the other woman gave her a warm smile of encouragement. "Don't be shy, I don't bite. Why don't you tell me your name?"

"Regina," she muttered, taking a few tentative steps away from Robin and closer to the blonde.

"Just Regina?" she teased. Strange to think this smiling woman was the same woman who made Robin so nervous. "Must be nice just having one name. Much easier to remember."

"Regina Mills."

"Well Miss. Mills, tell me the truth. Was Locksley here, giving you a hard time?" Regina gave a quick glance over towards Robin. He struggled to escape the hold of the other men and the brunette's nerves were on full alert once again. A pale finger against her chin guided her attention back to the blonde woman. "He's not going to hurt you over there love. You can tell me the truth."

Regina drew back slightly from her touch. "I work for him," she said, offering it up as though it was an excuse. "It's not unheard of-"

"Doesn't make it right from where I come from." The blonde cast an icy glare towards Robin that could have gone right through him. Without looking back, she gave an order to one of her men. "You make sure Miss. Mills gets home safely Humbert. We're just going to stay here and have a nice little chat with Locksley."

"Yes Boss." Humbert placed a rough hand along the brunette's shoulder and before she could gather herself, Regina ushered into the back seat of a car without another chance to speak up. The last thing she was able to see as the car peeled out was Robin being pushed down onto the concrete. By the looks of it 'chat' was a very loose term for what Robin Locksley was about to go through. She would have felt some sense of justice if this wasn't going to come back and bite her in the ass. Once Robin was free of that woman and her men he would just come right back to Regina. And when that happened there was no telling what sort of trouble she'd receive. Or what he would do with Henry.

"Where to Miss. Mills?" Humbert's voice interrupting her thoughts once more.

"56th and 8th," she paused for a moment before gathering the courage to ask the man up front a question. "Your boss is a woman?"

Humbert merely nodded in response before pulling away from the action about to take place in the back alley. The brunette noticed that unlike his companions, 'Humbert' had spent most of his time staring at her during the altercation, rather than linger on the man abusing her. Even now the man's eyes peered through the rear view mirror to get a better look at the battered woman in his backseat. The tone of his voice took some of the edge out of Regina's mood when he decided to finally speak up again. "Emma Nolan and her family are people you want on your side. They have a lot of influence on what goes on in this neighborhood. She isn't someone you want to rub the wrong way Miss. Mills." Sitting now in the back of a car driving away from the Robin and what ill fate awaiting him at the hands of Emma Nolan and her crew, she could see that there was truth in Humbert's claim.

Emma Nolan certainly wasn't someone you wanted to provoke.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Whoa! Thanks for the warm reception on this piece. Looking back I saw more than a few mistakes slip through the cracks. I need to take more time combing over the chapters once I finish writing rather than posting in an eager state. Full disclosure: The change from my previous attempt at this story is that Emma is not in this chapter (Sorry.) She'll be back in Chapter Three, I swear.  
**

 **Disclaimer: I own no rights associated with Once Upon A Time. I am simply borrowing the characters. No beta so all mistakes are my own. Sped through this so there might be a few more mistakes than usual. My apologies.**

 **Some Background Information (Feel free to ignore and carry on if you wish):** Nowhere was the influence of the Irish immigrant more pronounced than in America's most powerful city, New York. 75% of the famine Irish landed in New York harbor, and by 1860 a quarter of New York City's population was Irish. Within a few decades, the Irish held firm control over Tammany Hall, the Democratic Party political machine that controlled much of New York politics. The rise of the Irish in New York culminated when Al Smith, the grandson of Irish immigrants, rose from the tenements of the Lower East Side to become governor of New York in the 1920s. Large numbers of unemployed or very poor Irish Catholics lived in squalid conditions in the new city slums and tenements. The Irish were the poorest of all immigrant groups that arrived in the United States in the nineteenth century, and many women especially suffered as a result of being abandoned or widowed. Consequently, there were many cases of mental and physical illnesses, as well as alcohol abuse and instances of crime, among women of Irish neighborhoods. Irish Catholics were popular targets for stereotyping in the 19th century. According to historian George Potter, the media often stereotyped the Irish in America as being boss-controlled, violent (both among themselves and with those of other ethnic groups), voting illegally, prone to alcoholism and dependent on street gangs that were often violent or criminal. For the Irish immigrant who anchored in New York Harbor in the first decades of the twentieth century, no longer were prejudice, hatred and aggression there to spurn them. In their place was a new Irish-American identity, confident, proud, and irrepressible, ready to be assumed by the next greenhorn to step down from the deck of an Irish steamship.

* * *

The minute Regina exited Mr. Humbert's car, she bolted inside the decaying apartment building she called home without so much as a glance back. The car ride had been rather silent after Humbert's minimal insight on the mysterious woman who had saved her. While the name Emma brought along no recollection for Regina, the surname Nolan surely did. One would have to be living under a rock in the Hell's Kitchen area to not know of the Nolan crime family. They were known throughout the Northern Boundary near the Upper West Side for their laundry list of misdeeds. Gambling rings, loan sharking, boot legging, racketeering, blackmail, and that was simply the cleanest of their activities to date. Regina knew on good authority that the Nolan crime ring had more than their fair share of blood on their hands.

As luck would have it, Regina had crossed paths with the Nolan's daughter tonight.

Despite her better judgment, Regina cast aside all other worries the moment her apartment building came in sight. As she rushed up creaking stairs, Robin was now at the mercy of one of New York's most feared group of criminals and it was all Regina's fault. Or at least that was how Robin would no doubt view it if he made it out alive. Did she want him to make it out alive? The first thing on his mind would be retribution against the woman who had been unable to lie to Emma Nolan and her men. His survival would mean certain retaliation, but if Robin did not make it out of that alleyway, Regina would be without any source of income to help provide for her son.

When she reached the door to her place, Regina's hands were shaking so much that she had trouble pushing the key into the lock. By the time she could open the door, a young red headed girl was standing on the other side, confused by the appearance of the apartment's resident.

"Regina," she sounded surprised, "I thought you wouldn't be back until morning."

"Something more important came up. Robin didn't need me tonight," Regina lied.

Suspicion etched across the other woman's features. "Are you feeling okay? You look a little pale."

"Yes, of course." Regina frantically swapped places with her neighbor, hastily ushering the sitter out into the hall as quickly as she could, before addressing the redhead through a small gap created by the almost closed door. "Thank you for watching Henry." The sitter barely uttered her response before the door of the apartment shut in her face.

There was no time for her usual stance on proper decorum when all she needed was to see that her son was currently unharmed. Without bothering to take off her torturous heels, Regina walked into the open studio apartment and hovered at the side of the single bed. Nestled in a ratty blanket that could hardly pass as a proper duvet, laid a sleeping boy. Buried so far underneath the shabby cover, a mop of brown hair similar to Regina's own signaled to the concerned mother that her boy was indeed safe and sound. Slow steady rises of his chest told her that Henry was oblivious to all of the dangers this city could hold for a single mother and her son.

Regina tried to sneak under the covers without waking her son from his sleep. Henry stirred just a bit before he turned on his side and tucked himself into his mother's form. Trembling arms brought him in closer before a quiet sob finally broke past Regina's lips. Henry was fine and that was all that matter now. Not the Nolans, not all of their cohorts, or whatever seedy company they kept. Not even the thought of whatever remained of her employer could shake the relief Regina felt holding her boy. She would deal with whatever Robin might have in store for her tomorrow.

Tonight she just needed to be with her son.

* * *

It was a loud series of knocking finally woke Regina Mills from her deep sleep. For a brief moment Regina was able to enjoy the idea that she was just dreaming the morning intrusion and that she was still sleeping soundly. That is, until the events of her previous night came to the forefront of her sleep-addled mind. To make matters worse, she reached out to find the spot next to her was empty. The mother's whole body lurched upward from the bed in search for her absent son.

"Henry?" The boy had reached the door before she could warn him not to let anyone in. Robin was surely standing on the other side of that door looking for retaliation and there was no way Regina could let that man near her son after what had transpired the night before. Regina forced back imagines of what harm could come to Henry if Robin was on the other side of that door. Her reactions were still sluggish when she pulled the duvet off, right as Henry managed to twist the doorknob in his tiny hands on the other end of the studio apartment. Regina frantically rushed across the floor of the apartment floor, but was too late; Henry had already pulled open the door and was now staring up at whoever was in the hall.

"Hello." The poor boy looked so innocent as he smiled up at the visitor. Perhaps it was his youth or his generally optimistic demeanor that allowed him to trust strangers so easily. It saddened her to do so, but Regina was trying to teach him to be less inviting to anyone who wandered up to him in the dangerous neighborhood. When Regina was finally able to reach Henry, she wrapped an arm around his chest to pull the boy tight against her frame, hoping to prevent him from running towards the person outside in the hall. She felt his head turn up against her body, but she didn't dare look down. Her eyes were glued to the figures standing opposite of them.

Regina let out a sigh of relief, albeit a small one, as she took in the forms of two of Emma Nolan's various associates from the previous night. By the light of day Regina was able to get a better picture of the men who had interpreted Robin from having his way with her last night. There was Killian, she recalled he was the most vocal of the group, who had presumably been the one knocking at the Mills' door so early in the morning since he seemed closest to the open door now. His eyes were a striking blue, darting between the mother and son, clear realization shining through as he pieced together the scene in front of him. The one thing Regina noticed above all else in her state of worry was the self-assurance that exuded from Killian, despite the fact that any conclusion he might have drawn up was hardly worth gloating over. Anyone with an iota of common sense could see the resemblance between Regina and her son. Killian's apparent confidence only made him appear smug in Regina's eyes, especially compared to the relaxed presence of Mr. Humbert, who stood next to him without seeming to move a muscle.

"Hello," Killian finally responded. "What a handsome young lad you have there Ms. Mills." The mother's protective grip tightened as Killian turned his attention back to the young boy. "What's your name?"

"Henry Mills. You know, you talk funny. Are you a leprechaun?"

"Henry!" Regina scolded, finally finding her voice amongst the conversation.

"Definitely not a leprechaun kid," Killian laughed at Henry's accusation. "Maybe you're the one that talks funny. Have you ever thought of that?"

"No," the boy replied thoughtfully.

"Well then, looks like we are at a standstill on this Henry. In the meantime, I need to talk to your mother. Mind if I come in?"

"Yes." "No." The mother and son replied at once.

Killian gave a small chuckle before ultimately coming into the apartment despite Regina's protest. "Since the man of the house has so kindly invited me in," his words trailed off as he took in the meager accommodations. Regina had no doubt that Killian was judging the conditions of the place, right down to the peeling wallpaper and the smoke stains from the previous tenants. She shouldn't have been so embarrassed by the apartment, as many people would consider her lucky to even have a roof over her head, but the man's wandering eyes made Regina feel ashamed. The well connected lackey of a prominent crime boss probably dealt with the sort of people who lived in this type of environment all the time and he must have been making silent assumptions about Regina based off of the apartment's current state of disarray.

"Henry, why don't you get ready for school?" the mother suggested, hoping to keep Henry away from the two dodgy men.

"But-"

"Listen to your mother kid," Killian chimed in. Surely he meant nothing by it, as his tone was seemingly lax with Henry, but Regina still scowled at the intruder. When Henry shuffled off to the small bathroom at the other end of the room, Regina found a new surge of confidence.

"You-" she moved a step closer towards Killian, in a brave attempt to put him in his place, "-have no right to talk to my son like that, let alone tell him what to do in _my_ home." Her tone was hushed to make sure Henry remained in the dark, but still harsh none the less towards the stranger.

Killian pushed right back into Regina's personal space to square off with the enraged mother. "And _you_ seem to forget who you are speaking to. Do I need to remind you Miss Mills just who it was that helped you get back to your boy safe and sound last night?" When Regina seemed to physically deflate from Killian's implied message, the man continued, a smirk setting on his features, "There now, that wasn't too hard, was it? The boss wanted us to come up here and see if you were alright after last night. Humbert told her you were pretty shaken up about the whole thing."

As much as Regina wanted Miss Nolan and her cronies out of her life, it killed her to admit that she might not have made it home in one piece without them. Accepting help from others was a difficult thing to do for her and considering the fact that the small crew had saved her life made Regina swallow her enormous sense of pride. This called for appreciation, a feeling almost as hard to accept as defeat for the woman. With a small huff, Regina tried her best to calm down. "Thank you," she mumbled, "for what you did last night."

"Robin seemed receptive to our _talk_. I don't think he'll be coming back around here anytime soon. Not that I can see why he would want to."

 _"So he's still alive,"_ Regina gathered from Killian's report. Once he recovered from whatever _talk_ the Irishmen gave, it would only be a matter of time before he would seek out revenge. Seeing as she was the easiest target, this did not bode well for her future.

"How can you be so certain he won't come around here?" Regina asked, biting back the urge to fight back against Killian's disparaging remark about her dwellings. How could he know, without a shadow of a doubt, that Robin won't come hobbling up to the apartment bent on teaching Regina and Henry a painful lesson? Physical punishment was not far from unusual in her line of work. Killian seemed to take some time considering the worried brunette in front of him before his brow furrowed. His eyes lingered on the purplish bruise that had formed overnight on Regina's cheek. The sudden look of pity on both of the men's faces almost made it hard to picture them as the criminal they were rumored to be.

"The boss made it clear to Locksley last night that men shouldn't think they have the right to hurt women. She promises that she won't let him hurt you and your boy ever again, or any other women in this area for that matter." Just as quickly as Killian's sympathy appeared, it was gone, replaced with the cockiness Regina was starting to associate with the dark haired man. "This does mean you are probably out of a job. All things consider, I think this would be good news for you Miss Mills. A mother shouldn't be out conducting that sort of business at all hours of the night anyway."

The nerve of that man to think that Regina actually enjoyed what Robin made her do every night. Sleeping with whatever lowlife payed him the most for a night with her was hardly an enjoyable affair. "I don't think you have the right to pass such judgment. How I support my family is of no concern to you. Everything I do, I do for Henry's benefit and I will not have some _thug_ come into my home and look down on me for that."

Humbret finally stirred from his role as observer, but Killian held a hand out, effectively stopping the man from moving any closer towards the women. "Now, now Graham, that's alright. I'm sure you didn't mean to offend us. I'm sure you're just upset to be unemployed now. Right? You didn't mean to hurt Graham's feelings, did you?" Killian's tone was slightly darker than what Regina had initially been treated to and it was a reminder that these men were not to be underestimated. Honeyed words and all natural smiles were just a mask for what they were really capable of, or at least what Regina had heard about them through whispers on the street.

"No, it wasn't my intention," she quietly conceded, although it was not how she truly felt in that moment. Truthfully she could probably pick up another job in a similar venture quite quickly, but to placate the two outsiders in her apartment she went along. Henry was still a safe distance away in the bathroom and Regina had no desire for Killian and Graham to still be here when he was done getting ready.

"That's the spirit. Since in a way it is our fault that you are currently unemployed, the boss would be utterly devastated if she didn't make it up to you somehow. Her father has just opened up a new restaurant on 49th and 8th and the joint is a bit understaffed at the moment. With our backing, we could easily secure you one of those open positions. Late night shifts too, so you can see little Henry off in the mornings or do whatever it is you normally do when you're not out at night."

Regina had no desire to be tied to a well known crime family, even if it was playing waitress or whatever they had in store for her at some restaurant in a nicer part of town. _But_ , money was money and she was in short supply of it at all times, no matter how many hours in the night she worked. "And if I were to say no?"

Killian smirked. "If you were to say no I'd kindly remind you that Emma Nolan has done you a considerable favor out of the kindness of her heart _and_ has just generously offered you a way to make good." The man took a few steps towards Regina to invade her personal space. It was then that Regina noticed that Killian held more than a few inches over her. Up close it was hard to deny the certain charm and appeal the man held, if she had been attracted to obnoxious criminals who thought too highly of themselves. "Plus you'd be able to spend more time with me."

Regina scoffed, "You act as though that's a good thing."

"It's always good with me." The Irish man chuckled, mistaking the response as a playful comeback. "So, how about it Regina?"

The lack of any other practical option gave reason for Regina to frown. She truly had no other plans that would benefit her such as this. She was already trapped with accepting the job, which turned out to be more of another favor than payment towards the Nolan family. "Yes," she finally accepted when all other ideas were officially debunked, _"For Henry's sake,"_ she kept to herself.

* * *

 **As a thank you to everyone who favorited or reviewed, I wanted to upload a new chapter. Sorry if I missed any typos or grammar mix-ups. I'm not accustomed to publishing my writings so my learning curve is steep. Plus it's late so who knows what I missed. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read this work in progress.  
**


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